All natural household cleaners

The answer of course is yes, not only does it clean just as well and maybe even better in some cases but Acetic acid (a.k.a. white vinegar) is one of the best disinfectants. Plain white vinegar can even tackle salmonella, E. coli and other bacteria that can cause pneumonia, meningitis, wounds or surgical site infections.

How does it work?

The acid in vinegar crosses the bacteria’s cell membrane, prompting a release of protons, which causes the cell to die.

What about the smell?

Sometimes the smell of vinegar can be strong while you are using the cleaning product however it’s not harmful like inhaling some other store bought chemical cleaners and the smell will evaporate within a few minutes.

How do I make a cleaner using vinegar?

Add 1 part vinegar and 4 parts water to a spray bottle, add a few drops of any essential oils and you’ve made an all in one cleaner.

What can I clean with using vinegar?

Here are just a couple ways:

Clean your bathtub

Clean your floors and counter tops

Fill your dishwasher rinse agent dispenser with white vinegar.

Soak sweat-stained white clothing in about 1/4 cup of white vinegar and enough water to cover the stain. Leave overnight. Wash with eco-friendly laundry soap.

If it’s a New Year’s resolution or just want to start making better healthy choices for your body and brain, setting goals can be the difference between success or not. One thing to remember is that no matter how many times you don’t meet your goal, there is a lesson in each of these times and DON’T STOP TRYING. YOU WILL GET THERE!!

Here are a couple goals to set for yourself and your family for 2018 (or now!!)

Get on the organic train

The top complaint I hear is how expensive it is and although some items may be a tiny more pricey, you cannot put a price tag on your health.

Organic is not what it used to be and sometimes you may even see the organic choices being sold at a lower price. Check out organic bananas next time you’re in the store.

Even if the price tag is a bit higher, the quality of food and the health benefits dramatically outweigh the extra cents here and there.

Keep in mind, every time you purchase organic foods, you are casting your vote and the more people who choose these foods, the variety will start to go up and the prices will start to go down.

I’m not only talking about food though, I’m talking about the products we use and allow our families to use. If you read the ingredients in most of the bathroom products we use every day, it may be shocking. Remember that skin is our largest organ and absorbs around 60% of everything we put on it. One of the worst chemicals that is added in many of our cosmetics and body products would be: Parabens

What are Parabens- these are used as a preservative in many cosmetics, soaps, shampoos, body washes and even added to things we ingest. You might be shocked that you could potentially eat these cancer causing chemicals but it’s actually more harmful for the parabens to be absorbed through your skin. This allows the chemical to bypass the metabolic process and enter the blood stream and body organs intact. Methylparaben, butylparaben, and propylparaben are some of the most common parabens but there are many more but they all generally contain the name paraben. AVOID THESE PRODUCTS!!

Recognize the value of exercising

This is not only for shedding pounds but is also super important in keeping our bodies moving and living a long full life. Exercising allows our bodies to eliminate the toxic build up from our everyday lives and will allow your body to keep moving as you start to age. I’m talking how long you will be able to walk upright without use of a cane or walker. (Trust me future you will thank you). This does not have to be a vigorous 20K run or doing crossfit 8 times a week. Look at what works for you, always keeping injuries and time a big part of your consideration when trying to find activities that work for you.

Try Yoga, Swimming and Walking. Yoga has so many health benefits for you physically and mentally, swimming can be done by almost anyone regardless of current physical endurance and walking is amazing!! These exercises benefit your heart and work both the upper and lower body but are very gently on your joints. There are no excuses. I promise you, you will never regret adding exercise to your life, even if it’s just adding a couple yoga classes a week or a few 20 min walks.

Make quality time a priority

We all live these lives of constant stress (even if we don’t know it). We are glued to our phones and have become majorly addicted to the endorphin release that happens when we see that someone liked our post, or started following us on Instagram. There is an epidemic happening and of course we can’t completely ignore technology, we have to recognize that it has its place but at home during dinner with our families is not where it belongs.

Start by setting BOUNDARIES- No phone or electronics at the table, turn the tv off and connect with your family or even yourself. Try to be in the moment. Using mindfulness techniques can really help you fully be in the moment. Limit your TV exposure, instead play a board game or go for a walk. Remember playing eye spy with your parents? I do!! And I loved those things! I still cherish those moments with my mom and so will your children.

Time goes fast and I’ve never heard anyone say they wish they hadn’t spent so much time with their family and children but almost everyone says “Life is short”, “It goes so fast”. So take the time while you have it. You’ll never live this day again in your life.

Make up brushes can carry a host of bacteria and dirt from being set down on your bathroom counter to rolling around at the bottom of our make up bags. Then we take them out and rub them all over our faces and eyes. Having a routine with your brush cleaning helps protect you from clogging your pores and causing flair ups on your skin.

Ideally, we would clean our brushes once a week but this day and age it seems as though it’s hard to find time for even the smallest tasks, especially if they are not apart of our routines.

So, my suggestion is at least once a month you should be washing your make up brushes. It’s very easy to do, you can even buy make up brush cleaner but for a cheaper and all natural way to clean them:

How to Do the Deep Clean
Step 1: Rinse bristles under warm water.
Step 2: Fill a bowl with water, adding a dollop of organic/all natural shampoo to the water. Now swirl the brush tips in the water.
Step 3: Swirl the brush in your palm, working up a lather. This friction will help get any hard-to-reach dirt.
Step 4: Rinse the brush tip under running water until all of the shampoo is cleaned off.
Step 5: Towel dry brushes with a cloth.
Step 6: Lay brushes on a cloth to dry. Don’t dry brushes standing upright, since this will cause moisture to seep into the glue that holds the bristles and can lead the hairs to fall out. Because brushes will take at least a few hours to dry, make sure you apply your makeup before cleaning.

Home should be an oasis, a safe and peaceful space that promotes well-being and health. However, if you’re constantly cleaning up the house with harsh chemicals, hosing it down with anti-bacterial soaps and steeping yourself in off-gassing bedding and décor, home may not be such a safe place after all.

Here’s how to show hundreds of carcinogens the door – simply and easily:

1. Make your own cleaning products.
Commercial household cleaning products are a significant source of toxins, polluting your indoor air and poisoning your body, as they’re absorbed through the skin while you scrub. To cut exposure, make your own inexpensive, non-toxic cleaning products, using lemon juice, baking soda, tea tree oil and vinegar.

2. Stay away from toxic toothpaste. Most toothpastes and mouthwashes are loaded with fluoride, triclosan, articicial flavors and colors – all of which are lousy for your body. Switch to natural versions from the health food store or better yet, make your own. Here’s a great, simple recipe: combine 8 oz water (preferably filtered or spring, without fluoride) with heaping teaspoon of baking soda plus 4 -6 drops of organic peppermint oil.

3. Clear the air
But not with canned, synthetic sprays, some of which contain chemicals that are linked to increased breast cancer risk. Instead, freshen the air the old-fashioned way with houseplants, dishes with lemon juice and vinegar, and bowls of natural potpourri made with flowers and herbs.

4. Don’t buy body care products containing parabens, sodium lauryl sulfate or oxybenzone. They’re just a few of the toxins lurking in common body care products with the power to throw hormones out of whack and trigger health problems. Not convinced? Then consider the EPA’s acknowledgement that just a fraction of the 80,000+ chemicals in regular use have gone through complete testing for human toxicity – I don’t remember signing up to be a human gunea pig.

6. Take off your shoes.
How to keep toxins out of the house? Don’t bring them in in the first place. Leave your shoes and boots at the door to track less dirt, chemicals, pesticide residues, lead and oil into the house. It’s also a nice way to leave the world behind — and symbolically welcome yourself back to the haven of home. For more tips, check out my blog on 20 ways to detox your home.

7. Don’t eat toxins! Now, nobody likes to think they’re actually eating carcinogens, but for the most part, when you eat factory-farmed, processed foods, you are. Simply by switching to unprocessed, organic, foods, you can eliminate toxins from your diet and change the course of your long-term health. Simply amazing, eh?

8. Filter your water. Most of us drink, shower and bathe with water that’s brimming with highly toxic chemicals such as arsenic, fluoride and chlorine – so how to get rid of them? Filter your drinking water and install a filter in the shower, or a whole house filtration system to remove up to 99% of the bad stuff.

9. Sleep clean. To reduce toxins emanating from your current mattress, slip it inside an organic (not plastic!) waterproof cover to help reduce your nightly inhalation of chemicals. Create an additional barrier against conventional mattress chemicals by adding an organic topper to the bed. When the time comes for a new mattress, look for one that’s organic, or made of natural latex, cotton or wool and check out my blog on how to sleep cleaner and greener.

10. Ditch the synthetics. Synthetic sheets, comforters and wall-to-wall carpeting are made from petrochemicals and often are treated with chemical flame-retardants – and nobody should spend 8 hours a night steeping in all that! Switch bedding to unbleached, organic cotton, linen, wool or down alternatives and trade synthetic wall-to-wall carpet for eco-friendly, sustainable materials like organic sisal or bamboo floor coverings.

11. Cut the cord. The metal coils and wiring woven into electric blankets make sleeping under one roughly akin to wearing a full-body antenna all night, maximizing your exposure to harmful EMF’s. You can also buy himalayan rock salt lamps that have an effect of absoring harmful emf’s.

These small simple things can change your house from being poisonous into a healthy haven for you and your families.

Sometimes the smell and the chemicals of car fresheners can be worse and waaay more harmful then the odors in your car. Here is a quick, inexpensive all natural car freshener.

Soak 3-5 cotton balls in vanilla extract and put them in an empty salt shaker, leave the salt shaker in one of the cup holders and the wonderful scent will fill the car for days. You can use any extract that you enjoy the smell of, hazelnut, almond, etc.. Enjoy!!

I absolutely love garlic, i’ve become so immune to eating it that what tastes like a good amount to me is often a major overload for other people. (or so they tell me) I came across this great article on other uses for Garlic though some seem strange they work and it’s just yet another reason (or 12) that having an abundance of garlic around the house is healthy and now useful!!

Health & Beauty

1. Maintain Good Health. With properties that are thought to help your heart and liver, boost your metabolism of iron, prevent cancer, and fight against bacteria and viruses, garlic is a vital component of a healthy diet. Try to eat one or two cloves every day!

2. Cure a Cold. For thousands of years, garlic has been known as a treatment for coughs and colds. And, while the science isn’t all there yet, limited research has suggested that garlic will help treat these wintertime ailments. Mince a clove of garlic and steep it in hot water for about 5 minutes. Strain out the garlic and drink. It’s a natural cough syrup! You can also try to eat 3 raw cloves a day around cold and flu season to prevent catching a bug.

3. Get Rid of Acne. Cut a clove of garlic in half and rub it over the affected area. Done regularly, the antibacterial properties found in garlic cloves will help to clear up your complexion.

4. Treat Cold Sores. Like in treating acne, cut a clove of garlic in half and apply it directly to the sore. It might sting a little, but it’s been shown to work just as effectively as commercial treatments for getting rid of those unsightly sores.

5. Treat Athlete’s Foot. If there’s anything garlic doesn’t like, it’s fungus, so treating your athlete’s foot with the stuff works wonders! Crush a couple of cloves and toss them in a foot bath filled with warm water. Soak for about half an hour.

Pest Control

5. Use as a Pesticide in your Garden. Skip those harmful commercial pesticides and use a natural, DIY method with garlic instead! Click here for instructions.

6. Repel Mosquitos & Other Insects. We all know the best way to kill a vampire — garlic. But do you know why? Well, one major theory is that, like vampires, blood-sucking mosquitoes are afraid of garlic. You can rub garlic on your skin to ward off mosquitoes, if you like, but you can also leave out cloves of garlic in areas where mosquitoes flock.

7. Warning: Don’t Feed Your Pets Garlic. There’s a school of thought out there that garlic will help protect your dogs and cats for fleas, ticks, and other pesky critters. While this is true, garlic can be very toxic for animals. As the ASPCA notes, “An occasional small amount, such as that in most commercial pet foods and treats, may not cause a problem, but because of the risk, we generally recommend that you avoid feeding your pets products that contain more concentrated amounts of garlic.”

Other Great Uses

8. Repair Glass. Think of this as a quick fix for mildly-damaged glass — rub the sticky juice of a crushed clove of garlic onto the hairline cracks, wiping away an excess liquid. Garlic is a natural adhesive, so it’ll help the glass to stay together and prevent any further damage.

9. Use as a Glue. On the same note, you can use garlic in place of glue for other things, such as paper crafts.

10. De-Ice Surfaces. In a pinch, garlic salt works wonders in de-icing roads, sidewalks, and other surfaces.

11. Make a DIY Surface Cleaner. Chop up a 3-4 cloves of garlic, and toss them in a spray bottle filled with white vinegar. Add a couple drops of lemon oil and voila — you have yourself a DIY disinfectant spray!